Trusting Danger (Danger, #2)(81)

“Come in and sit down, Gray. I have news.”

Grayson took a seat. Based on Eli’s animated expression, this was going to be good.

“Dustin Abbott’s still in the hospital but will face charges once he’s released. In the meantime, we’ve gone through both his home and office and hit pay dirt in his files. Turns out, Peter Cooley was represented last year by Abbott. He’d been pulled over after an event for a DUI, and called Abbott to defend him. Whether he picked his name out of the phone book or was referred, we don’t know, but either way, now we know how the two were connected.”

Grayson nodded. “Cooley must have sensed that Abbott was dirty and approached him when he needed a criminal contact. From what Rex Gibson said, his client wasn’t impressed by my undercover persona’s credentials, so Gibson must have then hired Lawson and King to do the job for Cooley.”

“Right,” Eli said, “and here’s where it gets interesting. We never could figure out how Lawson and King found the safe house, but over the weekend, Roy King decided to take a plea deal in exchange for information.”

“At least he didn’t ask for witness protection,” Grayson said.

“True. He wouldn’t have gotten it anyway.” Leaning back in his chair, Eli made himself comfortable as he continued. “He insisted that Lawson was the one who actually killed Jeremy, and in exchange for our dropping the murder charge against him, he rolled over on Lawson and Gibson for the kidnapping, and Lawson alone for the murder. In his statement, he said that they’d been texted Claire’s photo and flight information when she returned from Florida. He and Lawson had been on the way to the airport to intercept her when they got caught up in traffic and were a little late, just late enough for Jeremy to pick her up first.”

“Lucky for us,” Grayson muttered, his mood souring at the thought of what might have happened to Claire if the men hadn’t been late.

“Anyway, they followed and watched as Jeremy met up with you and switched cars. When you stopped for gas, they drove past and turned around, watching for an opening. When Jeremy left the car unattended for a moment to check on you and Claire, he left the door unlocked.”

Grayson sat up straighter in his chair. “Son of a bitch!”

Eli frowned. “Yeah, I wasn’t thrilled to hear that either. So they pulled up on the other side of the pumps and pretended to get gas, and—”

“They put a tracker on the Suburban?”

“Nope. They had no idea they’d need one, so they thought fast. King said he put his iPhone on silent and tossed it underneath your front seat, then drove off before you returned to the car. They then tracked it using the Find My Phone app.” Eli shook his head. “Pretty good thinking on his part. Too bad he’s on the wrong team.”

“Unbelievable. So, they knew where the safe house was and they just waited?”

Eli ran a hand over his shaved head. “Afraid so. When Jeremy was there alone overnight, they made their move.”

Grayson sat in silence for a moment, sorting through everything he’d just learned. “I still feel like shit about not being there that night—”

“Hold up, not so fast.” Eli’s expression turned thunderous. “This is my team. It was my decision to leave Jeremy alone overnight after I met with Claire. I should have stayed or called in someone else, but I didn’t. I thought he’d be fine for a few hours, which was a stupid call on my part. Jeremy’s death—”

Eli stopped short and looked away, clearly composing himself. When he spoke again, his voice was slightly hoarse. “I spoke to Jeremy’s mother last week, by the way. She’s doing a little better.”

“Bet she appreciates you checking in with her.”

“It’s the least I can do.” Eli shifted in his seat. “Listen, Gray, you did a great job on this case. The local police think they’ll be able to tie Abbott, Lawson, and King to other crimes. Gibson’s off the hook, unfortunately, based on the deal we cut with him.”

“Still, that’s good news.”

Eli drew in a breath as he studied Grayson. “So you’re headed back to Scranton today?”

Grayson nodded. “Yeah. Just checking in before I leave. It’s time to clear out my mom’s house and put it on the market.”

“I’m really sorry for your loss, Gray.”

“Thanks. I appreciate it.”

Eli’s lips lifted at the corners. “Will Claire also be helping?”

Grayson knew better than to deny it. Eli was too sharp and would see right through his protests.

“No, she has classes this week.” Grayson smiled. “But she’s meeting me this weekend to help Cam and Autumn look for a new home. They’re thinking about buying some land outside Charlottesville.”

“Sounds like a good idea. If Deck Wallace could find them, anyone could. Although, you can tell Camden that Wallace has been transferred out of Fishkill, away from all his buddies. And his communication with the outside world is now extremely limited and monitored. He’ll have a tough time coming after them again.”

Grayson pushed up from his chair. “Thanks. I’ll let Cam know.”

Eli stood up and clapped a hand on his shoulder. “Enjoy the time off, Gray. You deserve it.”